Vietnam's steel industry might achieve 6 to 7 percent growth this year if the stagnant market is revived, experts said.
This year, the Vietnam Steel Corporation (VSA) has set a target ofproducing nearly 1.5 million tonnes of steel billets and 2.6 milliontonnes of rolled steel, year-on-year increases of 24.5 percent and 8percent respectively.
"The economic growth must reach 5.8 to 6percent first, then the steel industry will be able to achieve 6 to 7percent growth," said VSA Chairman Ho Nghia Dung.
Last year, themacro-economic policy aimed at cutting public investment which hadtrimmed the demand in real estate and construction. Weak consumptionforced the steel companies to cut production.
According to VSA,13 cast iron producers worked with 15 to 20 percent full capacity onlyand 26 pig iron producers used up to 60 percent of the full capacity.The total steel billets and rolled steel produced last year equaled 92.4percent and 95 percent respectively of the planned target for the year.
In 2014, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) will alsointroduce measures to resolve the difficulties facing the sector. Itwill work with the Ministry of Finance to help enterprises access morecapital to promote their production and business.
Nguyen ManhQuan, head of the Department of Heavy Industry under MoIT, predictedthat the steel industry will continue to face fierce competition thisyear, especially after Vietnam joins the Trans-Pacific Partnership(TPP).
Dung said that the most important element was thegovernment would be formulating proper policies to warm up the steelmarket. That might boost the real estate and construction sectors which,in turn, will help boost steel consumption.
Other expertsproposed that the policies need to help enterprises export more steelproducts and curb steel smuggling in order to set up a fair market forthe local producers.-VNA
This year, the Vietnam Steel Corporation (VSA) has set a target ofproducing nearly 1.5 million tonnes of steel billets and 2.6 milliontonnes of rolled steel, year-on-year increases of 24.5 percent and 8percent respectively.
"The economic growth must reach 5.8 to 6percent first, then the steel industry will be able to achieve 6 to 7percent growth," said VSA Chairman Ho Nghia Dung.
Last year, themacro-economic policy aimed at cutting public investment which hadtrimmed the demand in real estate and construction. Weak consumptionforced the steel companies to cut production.
According to VSA,13 cast iron producers worked with 15 to 20 percent full capacity onlyand 26 pig iron producers used up to 60 percent of the full capacity.The total steel billets and rolled steel produced last year equaled 92.4percent and 95 percent respectively of the planned target for the year.
In 2014, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) will alsointroduce measures to resolve the difficulties facing the sector. Itwill work with the Ministry of Finance to help enterprises access morecapital to promote their production and business.
Nguyen ManhQuan, head of the Department of Heavy Industry under MoIT, predictedthat the steel industry will continue to face fierce competition thisyear, especially after Vietnam joins the Trans-Pacific Partnership(TPP).
Dung said that the most important element was thegovernment would be formulating proper policies to warm up the steelmarket. That might boost the real estate and construction sectors which,in turn, will help boost steel consumption.
Other expertsproposed that the policies need to help enterprises export more steelproducts and curb steel smuggling in order to set up a fair market forthe local producers.-VNA
